scholarly journals Native Americans: a visual exploration by S. N. Paleja

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia Odeen

Paleja, S.N. Native Americans: a visual exploration. Toronto: Annick Press, 2013. Print. This book is a non-fiction text using graphics to cover topics as diverse as Aboriginal arrival, culture, language, food, housing, and the environment to present-day Aboriginal issues. It is chock-full of information using a variety of non-linguistic representations, such as graphs, pictographs, and a variety of graphic organizers in the form of timelines and other visuals.  The colourful pictures help to draw children’s interest and they also help reluctant readers access the content. A major drawback of the text is that too much information is covered, which means that many of the facts have been overgeneralized and can result in children applying the content to all aboriginal groups.  There are occasional problems with diction, such as using the word “tribes” instead of “First Nations”. Also, there should have been more focus on their culture, what issues they face, and how those issues are dealt with in their communities. The book is intended for children ages 9-12 but too often, the language used is difficult for readers at this age.  In an attempt to include a vast amount of information the graphics become confusing and are difficult to interpret. This book is a good starting point for those interested in this topic and is certainly recommended reading for an elementary school.  The timelines and information capture some of the most important points in the historical development of the Aboriginal Peoples. Recommended: 3 out of 4 stars Reviewer: Alicia OdeenAlicia worked for 5 years in a high school library before getting her dream job at the Bruce Peel Special Collections Library.  She now spends most of her time reading stories about dinosaurs, robots, and trains with her 3 year old son William.

2010 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Wyatt ◽  
Jean-François Fortier ◽  
Martin Hébert

Collaboration has now become a central element of relations between First Nations and other forest sector actors (notably the forest industry and governments). This article provides an overview of the extent of collaborative experience in Quebec. Our analysis is based on a diversity of information (scientific studies, a census of collaborative arrangements in 41 Aboriginal communities) compiled from a range of academic, governmental, industrial and independent sources. A workshop was also organised with Aboriginal managers responsible for forestry activities within their communities. This study indicates that Aboriginal groups and the forest industry in Quebec have established an wide variety of ways to collaborate, which we have organised into five general approaches : agreements to determine management responsibilities; mapping, planning and management activities ; consultation and certification ; forest tenures ; and economic partnerships and contractual relations. Our results show that nearly two-thirds of communities are engaged in at least three different approaches. This suggests that government policies should seek to encourage a diversity of collaborative arrangements, rather than promoting a single solution to respond to the varying interests of both Aboriginal peoples and the industry. Comparing experiences on the ground with scientific studies also shows that some practices, such as economic partnerships, have attracted little interest from researchers. Furthermore, university research has concentrated on the experience of the Cree, the Algonquins and the Innu. We consider that other groups, who also have long histories of relations with forest sector actors, are also deserving of greater study. Finally, we consider the impacts of several policy initiatives in Québec, including the current revision of the forestry regime. Key words: Aboriginal forestry, consultation, partnerships, co-management, traditional knowledge, governance, collaboration, negotiation


2011 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 2005
Author(s):  
Smith B. Donald

A look at three university-organized conferences, the first in 1939, the second in 1966, and the most recent in 1997, reveals an increasing awareness of Aboriginal issues — particularly in the 1990s. From the mid- to the late twentieth century, Indians, now generally known as the First Nations, moved from the periphery into the centre of academic interest. The entrance of Aboriginal people, “the third solitude,” has altered completely the nature of Canada’s unity debate. Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 19821 affirms the existence of Aboriginal and treaty rights. The definition of “Aboriginal peoples of Canada” in the new constitution of 1982 now includes the Métis, as well as the First Nations and Inuit. Today, no academic conference in Canada on federalism, identities, and nationalism, can avoid discussion of Aboriginal Canada.


2011 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 2005
Author(s):  
Julián Castro-Rea

Proponents of Québec’s independence justify their goal with the claim that their province is the cradle of one of Canada’s “Founding Nations.” In so doing, they bypass the self-perception of the dominant, politicized Aboriginal peoples, who perceive themselves as forming the “First Nations” of what is now Canada. These contending views, neither of which is yet constitutionally fully recognized, are bound to clash whenever issues of self-government are raised within Québec’s boundaries. Such a situation arose at the time of the 1995 Québec referendum on sovereignty, which was met with adamant opposition from Aboriginal groups, especially the Cree, the Inuit and the Mohawk. In reaction, Québec’s pro-independence government at the time accused Aboriginal peoples of being Ottawa’s instrument, and repeated the debatable argument that Québec has maintained the most respectful policy towards Aboriginal peoples among all Canadian provinces.


2003 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anatole Romaniuc

This paper endeavours to capture the broad configuration of demographic evolution of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada from the early contacts with Europeans to the present. The main stages thereof are identified and the underlying factors explored, against the historical background of Aboriginal and European civilisations' encounter. While taking stock of the past, the paper takes a glimpse into the future. It concludes with a review of demographically-driven policy issues that the First Nations are likely to confront as they step into the 21s Century.


2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Kathleen McMullin ◽  
Sylvia Abonyi ◽  
Maria Mayan ◽  
Pamela Orr ◽  
Carmen Lopez-Hille ◽  
...  

On the Canadian Prairies, First Nations and Métis peoples are disproportionately affected by tuberculosis (TB) compared to other Canadians. Statistics show enduring transmission and high rates of active TB disease. Despite awareness of the social determinants of TB transmission—such as substance abuse, comorbidities, and basic needs being unmet—transmission and outbreaks continue to occur among Aboriginal people. The Determinants of Tuberculosis Transmission project is a mixed methods, interdisciplinary study that used quantitative questionnaires and qualitative interviews to look more closely at patients’ experiences of TB. Provincial Network Committees (PNCs) comprised of Elders, traditionalists, community-based TB workers, and health researchers in three participating provinces guided the project from inception through to data analysis, interpretation, and dissemination. The collaborative efforts of the patients, the research team, and the PNCs uncovered a continuing influence of colonization in TB transmission. Overwhelming feelings of apathy and despair for the hold that TB continues to have in the lives of patients, families, and communities is captured by the Cree word “keyam,” which may be translated as “to give up” or to ask, “What is the use?” This paper explores the concept of keyam in relation to TB transmission.


Author(s):  
Michelle Reid

This research is a similar study to Gold’s (1998) study on the promotion of physical and mental health of mainstream female social workers in child welfare. Six First Nations women Child and Family Service (CFS) Social Workers (FNWCFSSW’s) who work in First Nations agencies gathered with me to share individual and collective stories about our CFS experiences. First Nations women and I discussed the impacts of our work on our holistic health, how we coped with the work, and strategies to deal with the issues that we face. This study outlines the research process that we engaged in, and, essentially weaves together the challenges, resilience, innovations, and unique experiences of First Nations women CFS Social Workers in a First Nations setting under a delegated authority model. As a result of these discussions five major themes were identified. The five themes that emerged from this study include the stress of dual accountability, the stresses of unrealistic expectations and multiple roles, the emotional costs and benefits of the intensity of the relationships, the fact that meaningful work gives strength and how the women coped and maintained their holistic health. This study reveals the important need for future participatory research to be conducted with FNWCFSSW and First Nations peoples. Ultimately, this paper speaks to the importance of changing the nature of along-term colonial relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples within the child welfare system and in dominant mainstream research processes.


2014 ◽  
Vol 116 (7) ◽  
pp. 1-44
Author(s):  
Bruce A. Kimball

Background Comprehensive, multi-year mass fundraising campaigns in American higher education began with the Harvard Endowment Fund (HEF) drive, which extended from 1915 to 1925. Notwithstanding this prominence, the archival records of the campaign have never been studied closely, and in the absence of archival research, scholars have misunderstood the HEF campaign. According to the received and presentist view, the university president initiated the HEF campaign, which professional consultants then directed to a swift and successful conclusion, drawing on their expertise. Focus of study The fundamental purpose was to learn from the archives what actually happened in this pathbreaking campaign. The research soon revealed that the unpaid organizers had to negotiate virtually all aspects of this novel venture among competing and conflicting groups of alumni, units of the university, and university administrators, including the president. The purpose then became to understand the divergent values and interests of the participants and how those perspectives contributed to the new goals, strategies, tactics, and practices introduced by the campaign. Setting The research was conducted primarily in the Harvard University Archives and the Special Collections of Harvard Business School library. Research Design The archival records comprise some fifty three boxes containing about forty thousand unindexed sheets of letters, memos, drafts, minutes, accounts, pamphlets, and other materials reposited in the Harvard University Archives. A chronological and topical examination of these materials over the past five years provides the research for this essay, which also draws upon a review of related collections in the Harvard University Archives and the Special Collections of Harvard Business School library. Conclusions The research led to several surprising conclusions: that the landmark campaign failed to meet its goal, that professional consultants did not organize or run the campaign but emerged from it, that now long-standing features of university fundraising resulted less from deliberate planning than from contentious negotiations among conflicting groups, that the campaign prompted the university administration to centralize and control alumni affairs and development efforts for the first time, and, above all, that a central ideological tension arose between mass fundraising and the traditional approach of discretely soliciting wealthy donors. The unintended and unofficial outcome was to establish today's ubiquitous episodic pattern of continuous fundraising, in which mass comprehensive campaigns alternate with discrete solicitations of wealthy donors, whose dominant roles have never changed.


2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (A29A) ◽  
pp. 142-145
Author(s):  
Alejandro Martín López

AbstractIn this presentation we address issues relating to the astronomical heritage of contemporary aboriginal groups and other minorities. We deal specially with intangible astronomical heritage and its particularities. Also, we study (from ethnographic experience with Aboriginal groups, Creoles and Europeans in the Argentine Chaco) the conflicts referring to the different ways in which the natives' knowledge and practice are categorized by the natives themselves, by scientists, state politicians, professional artists and NGOs. Furthermore, we address several cases that illustrate these kinds of conflicts. We aim to analyze the complexities of patrimonial policies when they are applied to practices and representations of contemporary communities involved in power relations with national states and the global system. The essentialization of identities, the folklorization of representations and practices, and the fossilization of aboriginal peoples are some of the risks of applying the label “cultural heritage” without a careful consideration of each specific case.In particular we suggest possible ways in which the international scientific community could collaborate to improve the agenda of national states instead of reproducing colonial prejudices. In this way, we aim to contribute to the promotion of respect for ethnic and religious minorities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Jane Moore

The story of kunanyi, a  mountain  in  Tasmania,  Australia that  has  great  significance  for  Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples described in poetry, story and painting. Hearing  words  and  stories  from  First  Nations  perspectives  in  Tasmania has  inspired  me to compose  and  share  a song  that  embodies  the  creative  spirit  of  the  trees,  the  moon  and  the  stars  and  sings  of  the creatures and  ancestral  spirits that  live  alongside  the mountain. The  mountain’s  story  song  shares  moments  that  begin  on  the mountain,  travel down  the  river  and carry meaning  into  the  sea.


2019 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Lynn Newell ◽  
Michelle L Dion ◽  
Nancy C Doubleday

BackgroundPrevious research association increased levels of cultural continuity and decreased rates of youth suicide in First Nations communities. We investigate the relationship between cultural continuity and self-rated health looking specifically at Inuit living in the Canadian Arctic.MethodsThe Arctic Supplements of the Aboriginal Peoples Survey from years 2001 and 2006 were appended to explore the relationship between various measures of cultural continuity and self-rated health. These measures include access to government services in an Aboriginal language, Inuit cultural variables, community involvement and governance. Literature related to Inuit social determinants of health and health-related behaviours were used to build the models.ResultsAll measures of cultural continuity were shown to have a positive association with self-rated health for Inuit participants. Background and other control variables influenced the strength of the association but not the direction of the association. Access to services in an Aboriginal language, harvesting activities and government satisfaction were all significantly related to the odds of better health outcomes. Finally, the study contributes a baseline from a known data horizon against which future studies can assess changes and understand future impacts of changes.ConclusionThe Canadian government and other agencies should address health inequalities between Inuit and non-Inuit people through programmes designed to foster cultural continuity at a community level. Providing access to services in an Aboriginal language is a superficial way of promoting cultural alignment of these services; however, more inclusion of Inuit traditional knowledge is needed to have a positive influence on health.


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